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17th April 2024 Issue no. 701

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This 'student' lock can secure your bike

Shanghai University students have invented a new type of bicycle lock - a coded-lock that can be inserted in the beam of bikes or other two-wheelers - and so effective has it been that China's top bike maker, Forever, has come knocking on their doors.

With cycle robbery a major problem in the city and rest of China, this lock is likely to be a sure-fire way to stop thieves in their tracks. If thieves destroy the lock by force, the bike is no longer usable as the beam is damaged and the front wheel is still locked, the students claim.

The students have secured a patent for the invention and Shanghai Forever Co Ltd has sought their authorisation to use the latest technology in its luxury bikes.

"We are in negotiations now," said Cheng Jun, a senior of Shanghai Jiao Tong University and the leader of the 21-student group which invented the lock.
The lock will be installed on racing bikes and other high-end bikes. The first batch of Forever racing bikes with the new lock is expected to be produced by September next year, Cheng said.

About 4 million bikes are stolen every year in China, with economic losses amounting to 2 billion yuan (US$31.9 million), he revealed.

Currently, bike locks are an attachment to the bikes. However complicated and sophisticated the locks are, thieves seem to easily crack them and make away with the bikes. So the students came up with the idea to build a lock into the bike.

The invention was awarded the Silver Award at the "Challenge Cup" Shanghai Undergraduate Student Start-Up Competition.

Source:Shanghai Daily

24th October 2012